Apple yanks Wi-Fi detectors from iTunes — Pretends they were never there — Wi-Fi hotspot detecting applications are the latest on Apple's list of verboten apps, and even developers are being left in the dark as to why. — Wi-Fi detection is something of a niche …

Steve Jobs: A man aggrieved — A new theory about why Apple decided to take HTC — and indirectly, Google — to court — Two thirds of the way through a 3,000-word essay on This Apple-HTC Patent Thing, Daring Fireball's John Gruber quotes a tweet by John Siracusa that gets to the heart of the matter:

An Explosion of Mobile Patent Lawsuits — At first glance, it looks as if we're in the middle of a patent lawsuit Super Bowl party. Nearly every large mobile phone player — with the exception of Microsoft, Palm and, so far, Google — has recently been involved in some sort of patent litigation regarding mobile technologies.

Search your Android phone with written gestures — As mobile phones become increasingly powerful and can store more data, we've introduced new methods of search to get you to your content faster, such as search suggestions or search by voice. But sometimes, typing to get to the right search suggestion takes …

Sony Readies Gadgets to Rival Apple — Threatened by Apple Inc.'s growing stable of portable devices, Sony Corp. is developing a new lineup of handheld products, including a smart phone capable of downloading and playing PlayStation games, according to people familiar with the matter.

Facebook Ads Strike Some as Off-Key — SAN FRANCISCO — Facebook, the world's biggest social network, is selling more ad spots to big companies like Wal-Mart Stores, Procter & Gamble and PepsiCo. — But the site's pages are also home to countless ads from smaller companies that can be funny …

Lords copyright change ‘could block YouTube’ — One of the most contentious parts of the controversial digital economy bill was voted down by the House of Lords last night - only to be replaced by a clause that campaigners say is even more draconian. — The Liberal Democrats forced through …

Stars make search more personal — We've long believed that personalization makes search more relevant and fun. For nearly five years, we've been tailoring results with personalized search. Today we're announcing a new feature in search that makes it easier for you to mark and rediscover your favorite web content — stars.

In Mobile, Fragmentation is Forever. Deal With It. — Editor's note: Richard Wong is a venture capitalist with Accel Partners, an investor in AdMob, GetJar, and SunRun, and a former mobile industry executive. In this guest post he argues that the fragmentation of mobile devices and platforms …

Google admits its SEO could use a little work — Google has published a detailed, 49-page report that rates the search engine optimization (SEO) on its various properties including the Google search home page. The result? It's failing in a number of categories.

Google Index to Go Real Time — Google is developing a system that will enable web publishers of any size to automatically submit new content to Google for indexing within seconds of that content being published. Search industry analyst Danny Sullivan told us today that this could be “the next chapter” for Google.

Unintended Consequences: Twelve Years under the DMCA — Related Issues: DMCA, DMCA Rulemaking, Innovation, Intellectual Property — This document collects reported cases where the anti-circumvention provisions of the DMCA have been invoked not against pirates, but against consumers, scientists, and legitimate competitors.

Feds weigh expansion of Internet monitoring — Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, who said that Einstein 3 could only be discussed in a classified setting, speaks at the RSA conference on Wednesday. — SAN FRANCISCO—Homeland Security and the National Security Agency may be taking …

Thumbplay launches music service for BlackBerry — Thumbplay is set to launch on Thursday the mobile version of its subscription-based music service for BlackBerry devices, with Android and iPhone versions to follow shortly. — Thumbplay is best known for selling ringtones …

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